How does a song move on the airplay charts?

[avaholic26]

Another thing I don't understand is how exactly a song moves up or down the radio charts? Maybe you great knowledgeable people can help me out!

I understand the mediabase charts meaure number of spins on each format but how does a song gain or lose spins? I know that if a song gets station adds that will increase spins but how does a song get adds and how does that station determine how many times to spin the song?

When a song comes out, is there any way to tell how high the song might go? Is there a general guide to what a song needs to do right out of the gate in order to make it to #1 or even in the top 10?

Also, once a song is very high on a particular format, what makes the song lose spins? Do the stations follow sales figures or the Hot 100 or something else entirely? It just seems like some songs hang around forever and others start dropping dramatically even on the same format.

[Minor Scratch]

There are a lot of factors. For a song to raise in airplay, it has to get good callout, station requests, good public reaction, positive pre-release buzz, considerable Internet downloading, push from the label, artist success from previous singles, and usually a proper adds date.

PDs will then program the song rotation on their playlists based on the reaction to most of these factors.

More of the unknown, obscure, or successful international tracks will be picked up by very large stations and then relay to smaller markets (especially in the United States and Canada).

Here on Pulse, we tend to also predict a song's success on most of the above factors. Furthermore, we will factor in past experience on same-sounding songs or previous peaks from the same artist. Tracks from more obscure artists or artists who change their style of music are definitely more harder to predict, and also more difficult for PDs to choose if it will be successful on their stations.

If PDs get a delayed or a negative reaction to new music by a popular artist, they will decrease the airplay of the song or drop the song entirely from their playlists. This in turn will cause other PDs to decrease airplay until virtually no stations are spinning the track. We commonly call this a flop here on Pulse.

Conversely, if a song gets immediate reaction and callout by a popular artist, the PD will raise airplay. Other PDs around the country will take notice and raise airplay as well, making it on its way to becoming a hit. Obscure and unknown artist's music will either play the large-to-small market relay game until it catches on and becomes a hit, or a label will send the song for adds because of success on other formats or internationally, where it will relay from station to station after that.

Songs crashing and burning usually happen depending on overplay, a newer single's jump in airplay, artist or song backlash, a dying trend, or simply heavy competition. If callout is still occurring on older songs or recurrents, it will probably stick around longer than something else. Radio tends to be listened to less these days, so popular songs that usually make it to the Top 10 have been in rotation longer than the 80's and 90's. If a successful track doesn't make it to the Top 10, count on it to have a very quick crash and burn process.

On CHR/Pop, faster, more uptempo Rhythmic songs tend to crash quicker than slower, ballad-sounding Alt and R&B songs. This is probably because it wears out quicker in the clubs and bars where more mid-to-low tempo music isn't as commonly heard.

[musicfanpete]

Aug 27, 2008 15:07:33 GMT -5 Minor Scratch said:

There are a lot of factors. For a song to raise in airplay, it has to get good callout, station requests, good public reaction, positive pre-release buzz, considerable Internet downloading, push from the label, artist success from previous singles, and usually a proper adds date.

PDs will then program the song rotation on their playlists based on the reaction to most of these factors.

More of the unknown, obscure, or successful international tracks will be picked up by very large stations and then relay to smaller markets (especially in the United States and Canada).

Here on Pulse, we tend to also predict a song's success on most of the above factors. Furthermore, we will factor in past experience on same-sounding songs or previous peaks from the same artist. Tracks from more obscure artists or artists who change their style of music are definitely more harder to predict, and also more difficult for PDs to choose if it will be successful on their stations.

If PDs get a delayed or a negative reaction to new music by a popular artist, they will decrease the airplay of the song or drop the song entirely from their playlists. This in turn will cause other PDs to decrease airplay until virtually no stations are spinning the track. We commonly call this a flop here on Pulse.

Conversely, if a song gets immediate reaction and callout by a popular artist, the PD will raise airplay. Other PDs around the country will take notice and raise airplay as well, making it on its way to becoming a hit. Obscure and unknown artist's music will either play the large-to-small market relay game until it catches on and becomes a hit, or a label will send the song for adds because of success on other formats or internationally, where it will relay from station to station after that.

Songs crashing and burning usually happen depending on overplay, a newer single's jump in airplay, artist or song backlash, a dying trend, or simply heavy competition. If callout is still occurring on older songs or recurrents, it will probably stick around longer than something else. Radio tends to be listened to less these days, so popular songs that usually make it to the Top 10 have been in rotation longer than the 80's and 90's. If a successful track doesn't make it to the Top 10, count on it to have a very quick crash and burn process.

On CHR/Pop, faster, more uptempo Rhythmic songs tend to crash quicker than slower, ballad-sounding Alt and R&B songs. This is probably because it wears out quicker in the clubs and bars where more mid-to-low tempo music isn't as commonly heard.

Excellent post, Minor Scratch! I was wondering about this subject myself.

[avaholic26]

Thanks for all the info, I understand much better now. I do have a question on two of the terms you used: What is "callout" and what do you mean by "a label will send the song for adds"? Is that something the label has to pay for? I thougt all singles went for adds?

[EvanJ]

Callout is a sample of what radio listeners think of the music. See ratethemusic.com/index.cgi/rtm?email=&raterid=&chart=rtm_10 for the CHR-Pop format.

[atlantaboy]

Aug 27, 2008 15:07:33 GMT -5 Minor Scratch said:

On CHR/Pop, faster, more uptempo Rhythmic songs tend to crash quicker than slower, ballad-sounding Alt and R&B songs. This is probably because it wears out quicker in the clubs and bars where more mid-to-low tempo music isn't as commonly heard.

Yeah nice post! Most Rhythmic songs are kinda more "hook-centered" (repeated catchy hooks) so they tend to burn more quickly - some don't though (like Yeah, Low, Say It Right, Give It To Me, etc.) so not sure clubs/bars have as much to do with it IMO

Songs with long chart lives IMO tend to have either extremely high callout (with low burn score), meaningful lyrics that listeners can "find something new in" each time they listen, or a sound that the station needs to "hold on to" to balance out the playlist

Only other thing I thought of is that big-name artists with new leadoff singles sometimes get instant airplay before stations have a chance to do much callout research - so established artists (esp. with highly anticipated new singles) can have large initial bullets, and then slam to a halt if callout starts comin back poor...same I think with songs that get tons of downloads, but turn out to be too polarizing (i. e. the people that didn't download it absolutely hate it), and the PDs have to back off on the song

[Minor Scratch]

Thanks atlantaboy for clearing that up! I knew it possibly had something more to do with the actual "sound" of the song than anything else.

And he's right, typically PDs these days will jump the gun on a heavily buzzed track from a very popular artist. If negative callout ensues, the track will take a huge dive backwards (examples of this lately are '7 Things' by Miley Cyrus, 'Feedback' by Janet Jackson, and 'Gimme More' by Britney Spears).

2008 has been relatively a good year for new singles by popular artists on the CHR charts. Usher, Mariah Carey, Madonna, Jonas Brothers, The Pussycat Dolls, and 3 Doors Down all had their respective first singles from their new projects do very well on the format and they did not initially crash and burn (though subsequent singles from some have not pass the test).

what do you mean by "a label will send the song for adds"? Is that something the label has to pay for? I thought all singles went for adds?

Yes, when a label finalizes a single by an artist, they have to go about promoting the single properly to the general public. Depending on how much popularity and funds the label (or artist) has to promote, the label will decide how much money goes where (TV, Internet, touring, and in our case, radio).

Radio is a very important factor in a song and artist's success. Though not very much the case anymore, it is usually the first place where listeners will hear a song and become more interested in the artist.

A label will choose which format(s) the song will probably be applicable to (CHR/Pop, Rhythmic, Hot AC, Country, etc.), and usually send the song for "adds" at a specific date (usually a Tuesday) on that format. This means that during the week of that Tuesday, radio station PDs from that format are able to add that specific song to their playlists. Heavy promotion to get the song played on the radio will then ensue (snippets, radio interviews, TV interviews, tour ads, radio ads, Internet ads, etc.)

And no, a single doesn't always have to go for adds. Sometimes labels or artists don't want their song on the radio, and would rather do a video, Internet, or physically released single only. Usually if it generates enough buzz, it will be on the radio anyway, regardless of an adds date or artist's approval. It is sometimes incapable to stop this occurrance even if the artist or label tries.

Sometimes, a label might not promote the song 'enough'. They might send the song for adds or release it to other places, but not promote it wisely when it is finally released. Even though radio is its own sole entity, its the working together of TV, Internet, touring, and radio for a single to be totally successful. If the promotion is not heavy in the other three, the song may prove to be disastrous at radio, or vice-versa. This will cause to the song to 'flop', and the artist's success and popularity could rapidly decrease. Recovering from a flop is usually an intense process. Radio and airplay statistics are usually the best indication for a flop of a song, so labels have to be very careful in how they go about promoting a song.

If a song is generating buzz earlier than that adds date and it has been formally or informally released elsewhere (leaked on the radio/Internet, or released on a different format), it will sometimes get play on stations earlier than its adds date. This usually happens more often on CHR/Rhythmic and Urban formats, where buzz tracks are commonly leaked on the Internet or released on mixtapes.

[musicfanpete]

Aug 28, 2008 8:40:35 GMT -5 atlantaboy said:

Songs with long chart lives IMO tend to have either extremely high callout (with low burn score), meaningful lyrics that listeners can "find something new in" each time they listen, or a sound that the station needs to "hold on to" to balance out the playlist

Excellent point on the balancing out of a playlist. The rhythmic songs on the Mix in Chicago tend to outperform a good portion of the rest of their playlist when it comes to recurrent airplay. Some of these rhythmic songs may get cautious airplay while they are at their peak on the charts (they don't want to alienate their core audience by making the station sound too CHR leaning and less Hot AC leaning), but at the same time these songs tend to linger on for quite a few months or even years since they provide a well needed balance to their mostly alternative lite playlist. That's why songs like "The Way I Are" by Timbaland and "Don't Stop The Music" by Rihanna (two songs that never made it into heavy rotation) are still getting strong recurrent play at 15 to 20 plays a week at this late date. With only one or two rhythmic songs played per hour, songs like this provide the balance that is needed on this stations

There are exceptions to this of course. "Clumsy" by Fergie was placed into heavy rotation right out of the box, while "American Boy" by Estelle (sans Kanye West) has already been placed into heavy rotation after just one week on the station. So these songs do provide the balance needed on the Mix, and they will probably stay around for quite awhile unless future callout numbers say otherwise.

Regarding your other observation about popular artists receiving immediate airplay for new music, a great example of this practice was illustrated by a Sheryl Crow song earlier this year. "Love Is Free" received instant out of the box heavy airplay for over two months on the Mix. After over 400 plays the song was completely dropped without any warning. This obviously occurs with dozens of songs on just about every music station in the country. But some PD's are obviously more patient with songs then others, and some stations give songs a longer shot than others.

I've also seen many songs receive heavy airplay for a certain amount of time, dropped completely, only to be picked up again months later. For those who have experience in programming a station, does callout change so frequently that songs can be dropped and readded several times? Usually from my observations of my local stations in Chicago, songs that are dropped but picked up again several months later usually receive a much longer run the second time around. Does that mean if a song is "readded" it only gets that second chance based on rock solid callout and/or a second push from the label? I'd be interested in any comments regarding this.

[atlantaboy]

Aug 28, 2008 17:29:54 GMT -5 musicfanpete said:

I've also seen many songs receive heavy airplay for a certain amount of time, dropped completely, only to be picked up again months later. For those who have experience in programming a station, does callout change so frequently that songs can be dropped and readded several times? Usually from my observations of my local stations in Chicago, songs that are dropped but picked up again several months later usually receive a much longer run the second time around. Does that mean if a song is "readded" it only gets that second chance based on rock solid callout and/or a second push from the label? I'd be interested in any comments regarding this.

Yeah I think it's weird how some stations "play around" with their songs like that...I'm thinkin that the initial airplay was prob. from hype (either lots of downloads or established artist) - callout started comin back as a mixed bag, so the PD dropped the song, but then the song prob. "grew" on listeners on other stations throughout the country causing callout to rise in other markets, and finally your station jumped "back on the wagon" lol - I def. think callout can "bleed" from market to market (i. e. people have friends in other cities who like a song, so they become familiar with it, and start to like it more, etc.)

[atlantaboy]

Aug 28, 2008 17:29:54 GMT -5 musicfanpete said:

Excellent point on the balancing out of a playlist. The rhythmic songs on the Mix in Chicago tend to outperform a good portion of the rest of their playlist when it comes to recurrent airplay. Some of these rhythmic songs may get cautious airplay while they are at their peak on the charts (they don't want to alienate their core audience by making the station sound too CHR leaning and less Hot AC leaning), but at the same time these songs tend to linger on for quite a few months or even years since they provide a well needed balance to their mostly alternative lite playlist. That's why songs like "The Way I Are" by Timbaland and "Don't Stop The Music" by Rihanna (two songs that never made it into heavy rotation) are still getting strong recurrent play at 15 to 20 plays a week at this late date. With only one or two rhythmic songs played per hour, songs like this provide the balance that is needed on this stations

Yeah I think Hot ACs and adult-leaning CHRs tend to "hold on" to rhythmic tracks "that work", and CHRs than lean more rhythmic tend to "hold on" to pop/rock/alternative tracks "that work" (all to balance out their sound without havin to introduce new songs that their listeners may not like)

Just some examples I remember...

In late '93/early '94, most CHRs were leaning rhythmic (playin TLC, SWV, Whitney Houston, etc.), so when Come To My Window by Melissa Etheridge and Hey Jealousy by the Gin Blossoms were released, they had insanely long chart runs (on BDS monitored airplay - R&R was still usin station playlists I think)

Then by late '94 (after Counting Crows, Collective Soul, etc.) came out, most CHRs were leaning pop/alternative, so when Another Night by Real McCoy was released, it had a ridiculously long chart run (esp. for a song which is almost never replayed today lol)

[musicfanpete]

Aug 29, 2008 8:59:11 GMT -5 atlantaboy said:

Aug 28, 2008 17:29:54 GMT -5 musicfanpete said:

Excellent point on the balancing out of a playlist. The rhythmic songs on the Mix in Chicago tend to outperform a good portion of the rest of their playlist when it comes to recurrent airplay. Some of these rhythmic songs may get cautious airplay while they are at their peak on the charts (they don't want to alienate their core audience by making the station sound too CHR leaning and less Hot AC leaning), but at the same time these songs tend to linger on for quite a few months or even years since they provide a well needed balance to their mostly alternative lite playlist. That's why songs like "The Way I Are" by Timbaland and "Don't Stop The Music" by Rihanna (two songs that never made it into heavy rotation) are still getting strong recurrent play at 15 to 20 plays a week at this late date. With only one or two rhythmic songs played per hour, songs like this provide the balance that is needed on this stations

Yeah I think Hot ACs and adult-leaning CHRs tend to "hold on" to rhythmic tracks "that work", and CHRs than lean more rhythmic tend to "hold on" to pop/rock/alternative tracks "that work" (all to balance out their sound without havin to introduce new songs that their listeners may not like)

Just some examples I remember...

In late '93/early '94, most CHRs were leaning rhythmic (playin TLC, SWV, Whitney Houston, etc.), so when Come To My Window by Melissa Etheridge and Hey Jealousy by the Gin Blossoms were released, they had insanely long chart runs (on BDS monitored airplay - R&R was still usin station playlists I think)

Then by late '94 (after Counting Crows, Collective Soul, etc.) came out, most CHRs were leaning pop/alternative, so when Another Night by Real McCoy was released, it had a ridiculously long chart run (esp. for a song which is almost never replayed today lol)

True. And some of those songs you mentioned are still played from time to time on some Hot AC and AC stations.

[John77]

Aug 26, 2008 21:29:15 GMT -5 avaholic26 said:

Another thing I don't understand is how exactly a song moves up or down the radio charts? Maybe you great knowledgeable people can help me out!

I understand the mediabase charts meaure number of spins on each format but how does a song gain or lose spins? I know that if a song gets station adds that will increase spins but how does a song get adds and how does that station determine how many times to spin the song?

When a song comes out, is there any way to tell how high the song might go? Is there a general guide to what a song needs to do right out of the gate in order to make it to #1 or even in the top 10?

Also, once a song is very high on a particular format, what makes the song lose spins? Do the stations follow sales figures or the Hot 100 or something else entirely? It just seems like some songs hang around forever and others start dropping dramatically even on the same format.

Nice thread... sorry I'm late to the party. The one thing I'll make mention of (which hasn't really been answered) is that the stations don't look at the Hot 100 chart in determining what they're going to play... there's a whole slew of "#1" Hot 100 songs that never got spun on top 40 stations or most other formats for that matter. Most of the coronation songs by American Idol winners, for example.